Virtual Routes (formerly the European Cyber Conflict Research Incubator) selected universities for Google.org funding from across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, to increase access and opportunities for students interested in learning about the key topics in the field of cybersecurity and exploring entry-level careers in the field. Students who participate in the courses will gain real-world experience in cybersecurity by having an opportunity to support local community organisations via activities such as internship placements, mentorship, and hackathons.
About Cybersecurity Seminars
At Google, security has always been at the core of our products. We’ve worked to protect people, businesses and governments by sharing our expertise and advancing cybersecurity tools and resources.
This program will provide Google.org funding and support from Virtual Routes to support cybersecurity training in higher education institutions in countries across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, to help students learn more about cybersecurity and explore pathways in the field. The program actively supports additional training opportunities in cybersecurity in a traditional academic context. We want to support universities in building a diverse workforce needed to help the most vulnerable organizations in their regions to prevent potential cyber attacks.
Grantees
We are pleased to announce all of the universities who have been awarded
Cybersecurity Seminars funding from Google.org:
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Romania
The Technical University of Cluj-Napoca (TUCN)
The Technical University of Cluj-Napoca (TUCN) is launching an interdisciplinary "Cybersecurity Seminars" series to enhance the technical proficiency of students, while promoting cybersecurity awareness in the local community. These seminars are designed to create lasting educational impacts by bridging academic expertise with real-world cybersecurity challenges.
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Czechia
Masaryk University
Czech CyberSecurity Seminar project will create cybersecurity educational clinics at Masaryk University in Czechia, targeting underrepresented students. The program will provide cybersecurity skills through lectures, workshops, and mentorships.
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Lithuania
Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (VILNIUS TECH)
VILNIUS TECH university's cybersecurity seminars will be available for students from various disciplines. It will provide a unique opportunity to delve into key topics that determine the future of digital security – from malware protection and responding to minor incidents to data protection and strengthening security skills. Students will closely collaborate with local organizations such as schools, trade unions, healthcare and social institutions, as well as associations that are vulnerable to digital security threats but lack the resources to address them effectively.
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South Africa
Nelson Mandela University (NMU)
Nelson Mandela University (NMU) will develop a series of Cybersecurity Seminars to upskill students with specialized skills. In addressing the prevalent cybersecurity challenges of local community organisations this program will identify cybersecurity related needs within local community organization (LCOs) and match the students with the LCOs on completion of training.
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Luxembourg
University of Luxembourg (Uni.lu)
The program aims at strengthening the impact of the Master in Cybersecurity and Cyber Defense, by establishing cybersecurity laboratories and workshops at the University of Luxembourg. Open to bachelor, master, and PhD students, and to underrepresented realities, the program will equip them with skills for careers in cybersecurity.
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Romania
Transilvania University of Brașov
The Transilvania University of Brașov (UNITBV) program will empower students to provide cybersecurity services to local community organisations. The course content, hands-on labs, and hackathons are tailored to the services students will deliver during their internships.
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Poland
Warsaw University of Technology
The primary goal of the Warsaw University of Technology's Cybersecurity Seminars project, supported by Google.org, is to increase students' cybersecurity skills, with a particular focus on the needs of underrepresented and marginalised groups. The project includes the delivery of specialised courses for university students, but also further knowledge transfer - namely the delivery of a series of cybersecurity workshops for school students.
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South Africa
University of Johannesburg
The University of Johannesburg Business School is launching a groundbreaking cybersecurity program aimed at addressing South Africa’s urgent skills gap. This initiative will train unemployed graduates and matriculants from underserved provinces, equipping them with essential cybersecurity skills. These students will then support 125 local small businesses, enhancing their cybersecurity awareness and protection.
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Ukraine
Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv
The Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv program will be implemented in a form of a year-long Certificate Program with Autumn term for education and Spring term for the selected (matched) local community organisations (LCO) consultation project and its defence.
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France
ESIEA
ESIEA's Cybersecurity Seminars aim to provide advanced cybersecurity training to students. Following their training, students will apply their newly acquired skills to assist Local Community Organizations (LCOs) in areas such as cybersecurity awareness, penetration testing, and regulatory compliance. This program is part of ESIEA’s broader commitment to training highly skilled professionals capable of tackling the increasing challenges of cybersecurity and contributing to a safer digital environment, especially in France.
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Latvia
Riga Technical University
The aim of the project is to train 200 students in cybersecurity over two years, who will consolidate their knowledge through internships in Latvian regions and by providing support to companies with limited resources. The project targets students from disadvantaged and under-represented groups in cyber security, such as students from the regions and women, thus promoting opportunities for young people to work in a well-paid sector in the future.
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United Arab Emirates
Khalifa University
With support from Google.org Khalifa University of Science and Technology in Abu Dhabi will implement a pioneering Cybersecurity Seminars program, the first of its kind in the Middle East, aimed at enhancing cybersecurity skill development and hands-on training. In partnership with the UAE Cyber Security Council and CyberE71, Khalifa University will lead the program to facilitate universities throughout the UAE in delivering a comprehensive cybersecurity training curriculum.
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Germany
Technical University of Munich
The Cyber Security Seminars at TUM blend classroom learning with hands-on, real-world applications, and build on the concept of Project Weeks for collaboration with a wide range of organisations, in particular many leading industry partners.
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Spain
University of Málaga
The University of Málaga programme will provide cybersecurity training to students of computer science (ICT) and other disciplines (non ICT). They will use their skills to proactively defend against cyber threats and impact their local communities by working with NGOs or micro-enterprises.
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Poland
Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznań
This cybersecurity seminar is a week-long event designed to seed or awaken a heightened interest in computer security by providing a clear set of guidelines with rationale and hands-on training. It is an intensive full-day programme with lectures and labs where participants will get to dive into the fascinating world of cryptography, secure environments, authentication and identification schemes, AI threats and benefits, data governance, and the legal perspective on cybersecurity.
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Italy
Università degli Studi di Milano
The project aims to provide interdisciplinary cybersecurity training to a minimun of 140 students attending the Università degli Studi di Milano to complement and strengthen the university’s educational offerings. The goal is to train well-rounded cybersecurity professional, with a deep knowledge of the laws governing the topic of cybersecurity in EU. The project will include a significant number of hours dedicated to "hands-on" activities with local communities.
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Italy
Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma
The project, led by Professor Roberto Setola in collaboration with support from Google.org and Virtual Routes, will train 75 students in cybersecurity between 2025 and 2027. It follows the European Cybersecurity Skills Framework (ECSF) developed by ENISA, covering both technical (network and software security) and managerial/legal aspects (regulatory compliance, risk analysis). Practical activities will support 100 local communities in improving their cybersecurity posture.
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Ukraine
Drohobych Ivan Franko State Pedagogical University
The Drohobych Ivan Franko State Pedagogical University cybersecurity course is aimed at enhacing the digital literacy of students and representatives of local community organizations. The course covers key aspects of modern cybersecurity, including risk management, secure data storage, and the fundamentals of threat protection.
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France
Grenoble INP - Esisar
This program, which will cover a wide range of cybersecurity issues relating to embedded systems and information systems, will enable us to strengthen and develop our students' cybersecurity training, and to pass on the benefits of this training to the community at large, by raising awareness of cybersecurity risks among the general public, and providing support to local authorities and businesses to help them deal with the cybersecurity problems they face.
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Greece
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (AUTh)
AUTh's Cybersecurity Seminars is an ambitious project aiming to provide interdisciplinary cybersecurity training and hands-on experience to students, to protect local community organizations in Greece. The participants will take advantage of the knowledge acquired in the program to put it at the service of the society through a paid internship scheme to the benefit of local community organizations.
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